


Issues With the Family Line

by DragonLover19



Category: Don't Starve (Video Game)
Genre: Dadsbury, F/M, Family Issues, Fluff and Angst, Higgsbury Faimly, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Mild Language, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Child Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2020-03-14
Packaged: 2020-11-08 15:16:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20837651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonLover19/pseuds/DragonLover19
Summary: An innocent little question shouldn't have such a dark answer to it.She knew it was a bad idea to press on the matter further, but he only opened up to her on such private things. It felt like she was walking on thin glass, ready to break under her with one wrong move.But she had to know. Her curiosity was starting to get on her nerves. She just had to find out. But she also had to be careful.After all, the look on his face when he was asked that question gave her the feeling that she wasn't going to like the answer.





	1. Chapter 1

The Constant.  
  
A place of death and disrepair. A place where ending your life could not relieve you from the suffering. Where danger was around every corner waiting to kill.  
  
Yet, even with the knowledge that everything here could potentially kill, hurt, backstab, or leave her for dead in the dark, Willow was oddly relaxed.  
  
A soft lopsided smile was on her face as she stared into the burning fire before her, watching it crack and pop as the wood burned away to ashes. Her head rested against Wilson's shoulder, listening to him tinker away with something. Probably a new invention, probably fixing something. She didn't care to know. She was content to be beside him, listening as he mumbled under his breath and tinkered away with his work.  
  
Across from the fire pit, Webber was chatting away with Wendy, holding Bernie up in his fuzzy black clawed hands and making gestures with his limbs. Though it seemed to be a more one sided conversation as Wendy only nodded and rarely said anything back to Webber as he spoke to her. If it were someone else, Willow would have thought it rude of the young girl not to engage or talk back to her friend properly.  
  
But Wendy was a quiet child. The few soft words she spoke were rare and far in between. She rarely ever spoke in long sentences, and her tone was barely above a whisper. It took some time for Willow to understand that about Wendy and her demeanor. Could have been longer had Wilson not told her a little bit about Wendy and helped her understand the child better. She wasn't being rude. Wendy just had trouble communicating with others around her.  
  
Webber didn't seemed to mind Wendy's quiet demeanor. He was just happy to have the simplest response from her. The boy was just a ball of sunshine wrapped in a spider's body.  
  
Off at a distance, Wickerbottom was looking over their supplies, keeping herself busy since the old woman suffered insomnia. Willow could admittedly say she was impressed how long that lady could go without sleep. She had tried to go without sleep for a long time as well, but that only ended badly. Not as bad as Wilson, but still bad.  
  
With a sigh, she leaned close to Wilson.

When had she felt so relaxed? Certainly not in a long time if she didn't feel any urges to set anything on fire. It was... odd. Yet very much welcomed.

"Something on your mind?"

Willow shrugged, rubbing her cheek against Wilson's shoulder. "No. Not really. Just enjoying everything right now. Relaxing."

She felt Wilson pause, turning his head to look at her. "Really? I haven't seen you this relaxed before. Not without setting a whole forest ablaze."

Willow hummed, scooting a bit closer to Wilson and wrapped her arms around his middle. "Maybe later. Right now, everything just feels..." She placed a kiss on his cheek. "Prefect."

Wilson's face turned bright red, grinning sheepishly.

"Willow and Wilson~ Sitting in a tree~! K-I-S-S-"

"-i-n-g."

Willow shot a look at the children, seeing Webber trying to hide his smile behind his claws and Wendy only tilting her head. "Shouldn't you two be off to bed yet?"

"Nope!"

"Sleep is meaningless as life. We will only sleep when death comes to claim us."

Willow rolled her eyes as Wilson shook his head. "Well don't expect Mrs. Wickerbottom to let you stay up the whole night. You better get to your tents soon, alright?"

"Yes Mister Wilson." The children answered in union, quickly going back to their previous chatting.

With a nod, Wilson went back to his work. Willow watched him for a while before closing her eyes and relaxed against him, smiling fondly. Everything felt just right in the world.

_Something she shouldn't expect to last long in the Constant._

"And that's when our grandpa took out his trusty hunting knife and fought the bear head on!" Webber exclaimed. Willow opened one lazy eye, watching the young boy lift Bernie's arms up in a almost comedic attempt to make the toy look menacing. "It was a fierce battle, but after a long struggle, grandpa made the final blow, and finished the bear off!" He held Bernie up, slamming the toy to the ground. "Hooray! Grandad wins without a single scratch on his body!" Webber smiled wildly, throwing his arms up high to the sky.

Wendy looked at Bernie with a unchanging glance before turning her eyes on Webber. "Did that really happen?"

Webber frowned, shrugging. "We don't know. Our papa told us the tale, but mother told us that papa never saw grandpa take on the bear. Grandpa keeps saying he did."

"Did he have any proof?"

The spider child tilted his head, scratching his black fuzz. "... We never asked. We just assumed grandad's story to be true. We could ask them once we return home."

"_If_ we return home." Wendy picked up the discarded Bernie, staring at the bear. "There's no guarantee we will return to the cruel real world." She held the bear up by his arms, dangling the bear around in a mock dance. "We can't be sure if we will ever return. Or if all of us even have the desire to go back..."

Webber's frown deepened. "... I want to go back."

Wendy made the bear do a small twirl. "Oh?"

"Yeah. My family is there." Webber smiled, tossing something into the fire. "My pa, ma, and granda. It's been so long since I've seen them. And they must miss me a lot."

"They must." Making Bernie bow, Wendy set the bear down on her lap next to Abigail's flower. "You speak of them so fondly."

Webber nodded. "And your family must miss you two, too!" Wendy turned her head sharply at Webber, her eyes widening just slightly enough to appear normal yet just big enough to look surprised. "You and Abigail. I bet your parents must miss you both a whole lots!"

Wendy glanced down at the flower resting on her lap, staring at it with unblinking eyes. "... maybe."

"I'm sure of it! I know my parents would miss me dearly for being gone so long. And I'm sure the survivors have people who miss they too! Like Woodie! And Winona! And Wolfgang and Wes and Woodlegs and WX and-"

Willow smiled, closing her eye and tuning out most of Webber's voice as he rambled on with the names of every survivor they've come across, snuggling against Wilson and feeling him lean against her hold.

"-and maybe even Maxwell-"

"I doubt it."

"-and Wigfrid and even Mister Wilson's family miss him a whole-!"

** _CRACK_ **

Willow's eyes shot open. The children's eyes were on them, or, as Willow quickly realized, more on Wilson. She could feel how stiff his body was in her arms. A quick glance at his hands show his small project, broken and small pieces slipping out of his grasp, falling out the ground with droplets of blood.

"Wilson?" Willow gazed at the scientist's face. His eyes were glued to his hands, staring at the ruin project and the bleeding cuts, yet made no move to pull out the shards biting into his skin or put down the item. There was something... _off _with Wilson. His eyes seemed to glaze over, staring at his hands and yet not. The look he had seemed so... so...

"Mister Wilson?" Wilson flinched, slowly blinking before his eyes snapped back into focus and look at Webber.

"Yes Webber?" There was a small strain in Wilson's voice, one that Willow noticed immediately.

"Are you alright?" Webber tilted their head in worry. Wilson stared at him a moment before smiling and nodding his head.

"Perfectly fine my boy. Just a spring popping out of place. Nothing-"

"You're bleeding."

Wilson gazed at Wendy a moment before looking at his hands, finally registering the bleeding wounds on his palms. "... oh... so I am." He placed the broken item down, flexing his fingers. "It doesn't look serious."

"Y-You're _BLEEDING?! _Oh No! Mister Wilson!"

"It's fine Webber! I'm fine! I just need to-"

"_MRS. WICKERBOTTOM! WILSON'S BLEEDING!_" Everyone watched as Webber shot up to his feet, dashing over to the other side if the camp where the librarian was at.

Willow shook her head, easing off of Wilson and taking his hands in her own. "They really don't look that bad."

"That's what I said. But seems Webber still doesn't understand that not every little cut is going to kill me."

"Coming from the man who dies more than the clown."

Willow hide her smirk as Wilson shot Wendy a look, probably to lecture her had Webber not returned with Mrs. Wickerbottom, pulling her along and pointing at Wilson.

"See! See! Mister Wilson's Bleeding!" Webber released his grasp on the older woman, allowing her to step forward and take one of Wilson's hands and examine it. "His Hands Are bleeding Mrs. Wickerbottom!"

"Webber, it's not that bad. The cuts aren't that deep. They're an easy fix." Wilson tried to explain to the worried arachnid child.

"Easy fix?" Wickerbottom raised an eyebrow, giving Wilson a knowing look. "Young man compared to everyone else, you take the most damage and deaths out of all of us put together. Even more than Maxwell and Wes."

Wilson flinched, though from Wickerbottom touching his wounded hand or her remark, Willow didn't know. Though she had to silently agree with the lady.

The old woman examined the wounds before nodding and releasing it. "It doesn't look serious. But best you clean those wounds and wrap them in honey poultice."

"Yes ma'am." Wilson pulled his hands to his chest.

Wickerbottom smiled, nodding her head in satisfaction. "How in the world did you hurt yourself _this_ time dearie?" Her gaze shifted to the broken item on the ground.

"That's... not important." Wilson snatched the item up, stuffing it onto his vest and stood up. "I'm turning in for the night. I promised Wigfrid I'd help her hunt tomorrow."

"Tend to your hands before bed Mister Higgsbury. I don't want you catching a flu over night due to exposed wounds."

"Yes ma'am. Of course." Wilson nodded his head, turning his head to Willow and gave her a small smile. "See you soon?"

"You know it." Willow smiled back.

Wilson turned to head off to his tent, but a small quiet voice stopped him in his tracks. "What is your family like Mister Higgsbury?"

Eyes turned on Wendy. She focused solely on Wilson, staring at the scientist's back, waiting for an answer.

Wilson stood there, silent and unmoving.

Wendy tilted her head. "I asked you a question Mister Higgsbury."

"Young child don't be rude. It's not polite to press." Wickerbottom chided Wendy, looking over at Wilson. "Wilson, would you be so kind to answer Wendy's question?"

Wilson didn't say anything.

"Mister Wilson."

Silence.

"_Mister Wilson._"

Nothing.

"Wilson Percival Higgsbury. I asked-"

"**_NO!_**"

The shout echoed in the darkness. Willow stared in shock, watching Wilson's body tremble and grasp at his sleeves.

"_No._" Wilson repeated, his tone dropping as the trembling increased. "Just... no." With that, he headed off to his tent, ducking inside and shutting everyone else out.


	2. Chapter 2

“Wow. Who knew such a big important place can look so—”

“Big? Filled to the brim with people? Filled with scammers and sneaky thieves? Not what you expected it to be?”

“Grey.” Willow smiled at Wilson. “I expected everything else, but I didn’t expect England to be so grey.”

Wilson shrugged though there was a lopsided grin on his face. “Hmm, you don’t really notice how bland and colorless the land you grew up living around is until you see how bright some other land is.”

“Can we go exploring?” They both looked down at Webber. His bright eyes peeked out from the thick scarf and baggy hat that hid most of his spider features on his head while the rest of Webber was covered by baggy winter clothes. He had complained at first, but Wilson had firmly reminded Webber that they were no longer in the Constant as he bundled the young spider up, which meant Webber had to hide his form from the world.

Willow could still hardly believe that they were back in the real world. Just a year and seven months had gone by in a blink, yet Willow kept waking up at night thinking she was only dreaming and still stuck in the Constant with everyone else.

Yet, here they were. Back in the real world living every day without the dangers of the Constant tailing right behind them where ever they went.

It was hard. It was really hard adjusting living a normal life again without waking up looking for food, or worrying about another Hound attack, or the threat of the Grue.

Willow shivered, masking it as a breeze from the cold by tightening her scarf. It took everyone days and even longer to realize they were no longer in danger of the dark, but Willow doubted they would ever recover from the horrors they all have seen and lived through. There were scars on their bodies that will never go away.

Her eyes shifted to Wilson, spotting him messing with his eye patch again. It was a last ‘gift’ from **Them** as everyone escaped. A last reminder of the pains and suffering they all went through, and the last bit of evidence that everything they went through was real.

Willow sure **Them** wanted to do worse when **They** realized the survivors had found a way to escape. It had been a close call, a very close call, but they managed to escape.

But not without injury.

While most of the survivors suffered minor scratches and cuts, a few of them had gained some more disastrous wounds. Poor Wortox was a mess when he lost his tail, but at least it wasn’t as bad as Maxwell.

Willow bit her lower lip, trying to forget about the old ruler and focus the path ahead. This wasn’t a trip to remember things. It was a trip for Webber. Somehow, someway, Wilson had tracked down Webber’s family. Letters Webber had been trying to send had somehow managed to find their way to Webber’s birth family, and they had instantly contacted Wilson.

At first they thought it was some sort of cruel joke, but Wilson managed to convince them that their boy was indeed alive after he put Webber on the phone. Willow it get most of the conversation but it had been a really tearful reunion over the phone. And while they really wanted Webber back, Wilson had convinced them to meet at Webber’s birth land, carefully describing the situation to Webber’s parents as best he could.

So now, here she was. In England, on their way to Scotland to meet Webber’s family. She briefly wondered how they were going to take the shock of Webber’s new form. She hoped they wouldn’t reject him for his cursed form or attack him. Webber was such a sweet boy, he didn’t deserve all the pain he went through only to receive more of it from his family.

“Maybe later Webber.” Wilson’s voice cut through her thoughts. “Right now, let’s focus on meeting your family first.”

Webber eyes dimmed a bit, looking at Wilson with worry. “Do you think pa and ma will…” Webber’s voice cut off softly, tightening his grip on Willow and Wilson’s hand. “… Do you think they’ll still love me?”

“Of course!”

“I’m certain they still love you!”

Willow squeezed Webber’s hand, smiling reassuringly at the spider child. “If calling Wilson in the middle of the night nearly for a month doesn’t say that they love you, then I don’t know what does.”

Webber stared at her a moment before looking at the ground, kicking the snow with his boots. “But… what if they stop loving me when they—”

“Webber. Stop.” Wilson pulled them to a stop, kneeling down in front of Webber and placing both of his hands on Webber’s shoulders. “I’m sure that they… _might_ be shocked by your new form, but they’re still your family. It might take them some time to get used to your new features, but I can promise you that they’ll still love you, no matter what you look like.”

“… promise?”

“Swear it on my heart.” Wilson raised one hand up, crossing an X over his chest with his other hand. Willow couldn’t help but chuckle. Wilson was such a dork at times. But this seemed to satisfy Webber enough.

“Okay! I’ll keep you on that promise!”

“Have I ever let you down on a promise before?” Wilson smirked as he stood back up, dusting the snow off his knees.

“Nope!” Webber bounced, giggling happily. “Well, except the time you promised to get new toys for me and Wendy. And the time you forgot to help me with my costume. And that one time you _swore_ you wouldn’t go to Lunar Island alone anymore but the next day you did. And the time Willow had to drag you down to the underground for the summer even though you promised that you would on your own. And—”

“_O_—kay, how about we focus on getting you to your parents?” Wilson stopped Webber before he could continue on. Willow smirked at Wilson, who shrugged.

“Okay! But can we find something to eat first? I’m getting hungry.”

Willow and Wilson shared a look. They knew they didn’t need to worry about food anymore, but it was still hard to believe that they didn’t need to forage for food anymore when they felt hungry.

“… I’m… sure there’s a restaurant somewhere we can stop by to get something to eat.” Wilson stuck his hand in his pocket, pulling out some cash and counted it. He nodded his head and stuffed the bills back in his pocket. “We should have enough for a quick stop and snack. Then we can get back to getting to Scotland.”

Webber cheered, grabbing Willow’s hand. “I’m gonna have a biscuit!”

Willow giggled as Wilson groaned. “You let him spend one day with Maxwell, and now he calls cookies _biscuits_.”

“Well what did you expect?”

“Certainly for Webber not to call cookies _biscuits_. I mean, come on! They’re _cookies_! Not _biscuits_! Who calls a cookie a biscuit?!” Willow rolled her eyes as Wilson started to rant, pulling Webber along as Wilson followed behind them.

“Maxwell calls cookies biscuits.”

“Yes, but it’s better not to bring that up around Wilson when he’s ranting. You know how he gets when he’s on a role.”

Webber nodded.

“And another thing!” Wilson hurried over in front of them, walking backwards as they walked. “What is with calling other foods different names when they basically mean the _same_ _thing_? Like, potato, patato. They just—!”

Wilson didn’t get to finish as his back slammed into another person. Not hard enough to send anyone to the ground, but enough to throw each of them off balance. Willow, despite knowing there was no danger, rushed forward and grabbed Wilson’s hands, steadying him before he could fall over.

“You know, I really expected you to learn that walking backwards without paying attention to your surroundings isn’t such a good idea.” She whispered to him as he straightened himself.

Wilson coughed into his fist, cheeks dusting with red. “Yes, I suppose I should have—”

“_Excuse me._”

Willow flinched, looking behind Wilson to the person he bumped into. The man looked almost as tall as Maxwell, but still a few inches shorter than the tall man that he didn’t quite tower over them. Willow couldn’t see his face too well, by she could see from the fine silk and expensive looking coat that this guy was rather rich. The man seemed to favor black as well, as he was covered head to toe in black winter clothing.

“Why don’t you watch where you’re going _peasant?_”

Willow felt her blood boil as the man spat the word at Wilson. Instinctively she reached for her lighter hidden in her pocket, but a hand grabbed her wrist, stopping her. She looked at Wilson, seeing him shake his head with a deep frown on his face. Right. Not in the Constant anymore. Acts of violence in public was a no-no.

“Thousand pardons good sir.” Wilson quickly switched from a frown to a smile. “I do apologize for my rude behavior. I was caught up talking with my fiancée and our ward I simply too caught up to notice for unsuspecting passers.”

Heat flooded Willow’s cheeks, burying her face in the scarf more to hide her blush. No matter how many times she heard it, it was hard to believe she and Wilson were engaged now. They often joked about back in the Constant, but now, it was becoming a real thing.

“Oh really? And what, pray tell, was so important that you had to ignore your surroundings and rudely bump into me? Were you too caught up looking at her ugly face to notice me, or were you too blind to notice under that fake pity excuse eye patch your wearing to make others feel sorry for you?”

Willow shot daggers at the man, feeling Wilson tighten his grip slightly on her wrist. The guy was just asking to be burned.

“Again, I apologize. But we really must be on our way.” Wilson motioned Webber to grab his hand, and the three of them went around the man. “Have a nice day now good sir.”

“Now hang on! I’m not done with you!”

“Yes well I’m certainly done with _you_, so—” A pained yelp reached Willow’s ears and her eyes quickly shot towards Wilson who laid sprawled on the snow covered ground. She quickly went to assist him as Webber cried out in alarm.

“Mister Wilson!”

“Wilson!”

Wilson shook his head, signaling he was fine, even though Willow could see a dirty imprint where the man had kicked him on his back. “I’m fine.”

“_Like hell you are._” Willow hissed as she helped him up. “_I’m going to burn this guy’s as—_”

“Willow, no. It’s _fine_. Let’s just go before—”

“Wilson?”

Willow twisted her head, glaring at the man who dared kicked her fiancé.

“Wilson? Wilson Percival Higgsbury?”

Willow’s eyebrows shot up. How did this man know Wilson’s full name? She turned her head to ask him, but her words died when she saw the look on his face. His face was pale, paler than normal. His mouth was in a thin, tight line, unlike when he was in deep thought, this was somehow tighter. His remaining eye was wide. Wide and filled with an emotion Willow could recognize in a heartbeat.

Fear.

Wilson looked over his shoulder, staring at the man with his remaining eye.

“… It _is_ you.”

Wilson didn’t speak. Instead, her grabbed Willow’s arm and Webber and pulled them along hurriedly.

“Will?”

“Mister Wilson?”

“Run.” Wilson hissed under his breath, pulling them harder and speeding up his steps. “Just run.”

“Wilson!”

Willow glanced behind them, seeing the man following them. She instantly knew it was going to be trouble, so she quickly picked her speed up into a sprint with Wilson scooping up Webber into his arms and matching her speed.

“Wilson!”

The man still followed them, even as they rounded a sharp turn and jumped over slippery ice patches. Years of being in the Constant had honed their physical abilities for survival, and now their abilities were once again being put to use to out run this man. Yet, he still managed to keep tailing them, even as they ran into a crowed area, into the streets, and jumping over fallen obstacles, he persisted like a bad shadow that just wouldn’t leave them alone.

“_Damn you hair, why do you have to be so recognizable?!_” She heard Wilson growl, for once not praising or complimenting it like he normally did. Though it would probably explain how the man was able to keep following them. Wilson’s hair was very unique looking.

Willow cast a glance back, seeing the man closer before, reaching a hand out to grab Wilson. Willow’s old instinct to protect her loved ones took over, twisting around and balling her hand into a fist, swinging it out without hesitation. Her fist made contact with her target, hitting the man right on the jaw with enough force to send him sprawling to the ground. With a satisfied huff, she continued to run, following Wilson as the three of them ran away from the man.

She didn’t know where they were going till Wilson hurried down some steps onto a dock, placing Webber in a row boat and assuring her to get in as he undid the rope. She blamed adrenaline for clouding her judgment as she stepped in and took a seat by Webber at the front while Wilson finished working on the rope, tossing it inside and pushing the boat away from the dock.

“_Wilson!_”

Willow looked up to see the man standing at the top of the steps. Even though she still couldn’t make out his facial features, she could tell that he was mad.

Wilson only took a glance at the man before shoving the boat off, hopping inside just barely making it. After quickly correcting himself in the correct seating position, he quickly grabbed the oars and began to row them farther and farther away from the dock where the man angrily yelled out Wilson’s name.

“How did that man know you?” Webber spoke up after some time when the man’s voice was lost to the wind and they were far enough away from the dock.

Wilson didn’t say anything at first, casting a glance back at them. He gazed towards the docks, silent for a while before speaking in a strained quiet voice. “… His… name is Alex. We… know each other.”

“How?” Willow placed a hand on Webber’s shoulder, shaking her head. She had a feeling Wilson didn’t want to speak about the man, now known as Alex, and she didn’t want to press on the matter when Wilson looked so tense.

Yet she was also curious, and she couldn’t help but look at Wilson with worry. Was this Alex a bad person? Should she be worried about him? Why was Wilson so sacred of him?

It was minutes before Wilson spoke again, in a more hush voice that it was almost lost to the wind. “… he’s my cousin.”


End file.
